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Building projects have substantial site-related environmental effects. Location and Transportation (LT) credits reward the choice of site locations that promote environmentally responsible land-use patterns and neighborhoods and offer environmental advantages over conventional developments. (The next credit category, Sustainable Sites, focuses on consequences for the site itself.) more...

Although the focus of green building is typically on the built structures, the design of the site and its natural elements can have significant environmental consequences, good or bad. The Sustainable Sites (SS) category rewards project teams for designing the site to minimize adverse effects. (The Location and Transportation category rewards project teams for choosing a preferable site location.) more...

Water Efficiency (WE) - In the U.S., approximately 345 billion gallons of fresh water is withdrawn per day from rivers and reservoirs to support residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, and recreational activities. This accounts for about one-fourth of the nation’s total supply of renewable fresh water. Almost 65 percent of this water is discharged to rivers, streams, and other waterbodies after use and, in some cases, treatment. Additionally, water is withdrawn from underground aquifers. In some parts of the country, water levels in these aquifers have dropped more than 100 feet since the 1940s. more...

Energy and Atmosphere (EA) - Although new homes use 14% less energy per square foot than homes built in the 1980s, and 40% less energy per square foot than homes built in the 1950s, according to the U.S. Department of Energy, these efficiency improvements have not kept up the increased size of new homes. The average size of new homes has doubled over the past 50 years. As a result, total U.S. fossil fuel use in homes has been steadily increasing. The average American consumes five times more energy than the average global citizen, 10 times more than the average Chinese person, and nearly 20 times more than the average Indian. more...

Materials and Resources (MR) - The choice of building materials is important for sustainable homebuilding because of the extraction, processing, and transportation they require. Activities to produce building materials may pollute air and water, destroy natural habitats, and deplete natural resources. Construction and demolition wastes constitute about 40% of the total solid waste stream in the U.S. more...

Indoor Environmental Quality (EQ) - Americans spend, on average, 90% of their time indoors, where levels of pollutants may run two to five times—and occasionally more than 100 times—higher than outdoors, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Similarly, the World Health Organization reports that most of an individual’s exposure to many air pollutants comes through inhalation of indoor air. Many of the pollutants found indoors can cause health reactions in the estimated 17 million Americans who suffer from asthma and 40 million who have allergies, contributing to millions of days absent from school and work. more...

Innovation (IN) - Sustainable design strategies and measures are constantly evolving and improving. New technologies are continually introduced to the marketplace, and up-to-date scientific research influences building design strategies. Occasionally, a strategy results in building performance that greatly exceeds that required in an existing LEED credit. Other strategies may not be addressed by any LEED prerequisite or credit but warrant consideration for their sustainability benefits. more...

Regional Priority (RP) - Because some environmental issues are particular to a locale, volunteers from USGBC chapters and the LEED International Roundtable have identified distinct environmental priorities within their areas and the credits that address those issues. These Regional Priority credits encourage project teams to focus on their local environmental priorities. more...

Pilot Credits - Pilot credits are a testing area for new ideas in LEED. Below is a list of pilot credits available for the rating system you've selected. Credit can be earned in the Innovation category, or, for Pilot ACPs, the pilot can be used to replace an existing credit. To see the complete pilot credit library click here